The 2018 Trades Union Congress took place from Sunday 9thSeptember to Wednesday 12thSeptember 2018.

All unions were entitled to submit two motions to the agenda. The CWU National Executive Council agreed the following motions:-

MOTION 1 – A NEW DEAL FOR WORKERS

Congress agreesthe 12thMayNew Deal Rally is the catalyst for stronger collective action in the biggest trade union campaign for decades to reclaim our purpose as the collective voice of workers and to change the balance of forces in the world of work.

The General Council must agree, publish and deliver a new deal next steps plan based on the following:-

Agree a common bargaining agenda for individual sectors to tackle insecure employment and in work poverty and stress.

Convene a summit to agree a charter, similar to Bridlington, which promotes greater co-operation on how we recruit the millions of unorganised UK workers and bring an end to inter-union competition.

Agree a trade union New Deal Manifesto that builds on the Labour Party Manifesto and the work of the Institute of Employment Rights

Organise a day of action in support of the new deal in the first half of 2019, backed up and preceded by our biggest ever collective communication, social media and workplace meeting strategy. The action will be deliverable by agreeing an innovative menu of options that workers everywhere can participate in on a given date.

Congress recognises that with the structural inequality and imbalance of power in today’s economy, the major problems in today’s world of work and the challenge of the fourth industrial revolution it has never been more important for unions to come together like never before and deliver a bold new deal for workers.

Communication Workers Union

MOTION 2: BREXIT

Congress strongly condemns the government for its inept handling of the Brexit process. As set out in the General Council statement agreed at Congress last year, Congress continues to believe that in order to bring together workers, we must respect the referendum result and continue to call for a ‘jobs and rights first Brexit.’

Any Brexit deal must enshrine and enhance working rights, social and environmental protections; maintain the Good Friday agreement and prevent a hard border in Northern Ireland; secure a customs union with the EU; and protect barrier free access to the single market.

Congress agrees that the TUC should campaign against any deal that does not meet these tests with the aim of forcing an early general election to secure a Labour government with a mandate for a Brexit deal that puts working people first.

Congress agrees that the trade union movement has a responsibility to unify all workers whether they voted leave or remain and the best way of achieving this is to directly link the fight for a new deal for workers in the UK with the TUC’s work on Brexit.

Congress also agrees that we must continue to fight for reform of the EU to promote the interests of workers across Europe.

Communication Workers Union

The CWU was also entitled to submit two amendments. These were as follows:-

“Congress also recognises that for millions of workers, current pension provision from their employer is wholly inadequate. While DB schemes remain the gold standard, Congress supports the introduction of CDC as an alternative to DC provision and calls for the government to permit CDC schemes in the UK.”

Proposed Amendment to Motion P62 : Mental health crisis (Unison)

Add the following two new bullet points at the end of the motion

iii. organise a one day conference in 2019 on mental health in the workplace to bring together unions and organisations specialising in mental health issues;

set up a cross-union working group on mental health to share best practice and co-ordinate campaigning work.

The Chair welcomed all CWU Delegates to the meeting in particular those who were attending the TUC Congress for the first time and asked the delegation to introduce themselves to the meeting.

Apologies were received from Sajid Shaikh (Domestic), Chris Webb (Domestic) and Kate Hudson late arrival (Domestic).

2 GENERAL SECRETARY OVERVIEW

The General Secretary welcomed all delegates and said that this year’s Congress was probably the most important TUC for many years, especially the debate around Brexit and that the CWU has been pushing for new policies on a new deal for workers with the TUC.

The General Secretary was also encouraged on how many delegates are speaking on debates during the course of the week, and said that he felt this year’s TUC would be a good and interesting Congress.

3 EXPLANATION OF TUC DOCUMENTS

Bill Taylor provided an explanation of the TUC pack provided at the meeting which included:

General Council Report 2018

Final Agenda 2018

General Purposes Committee Report and Composite

Motions and General Council Statements 2018

Consolidated Motions and Composite Motions 2018 (printed Monday)

CWU POLICY POSITION ON MOTIONS AND AMENDMENTS

The SDGS went through the CWU policy position on motions and amendments.

Motion

Subject

Submitted By

Recommendation

SECTION 1: THE ECONOMY

1

Industrial strategy: an economy for the many

Unite

*Aslef amendment

S

2

The future of the retail sector

Union of Shop, Distributive and Allied Workers

S

3

Save Our Steel

Community

S

4

Local casting

Equity

S

5

Automation

Community

S

6

Automation and its impact on black workers

TUC Black Workers Conference

S

7

Just transition and energy workers’ voice

GMB

O

8

Fracking

Bakers, Food and Allied Workers’ Union

*Unison amendment

S

*Oppose Amendment

9

Strategy for a low- carbon industrial region

TUC Trades Union Councils Conference

S

10

Nationalisation of the railways

National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers

S

11

High fares and the decline in season ticket sales

ASLEF

S

12

Transport: Britain’s railways

Transport Salaried Staffs’ Association

S

13

The danger of rail freight decline for UK infrastructure

ASLEF

S

14

ETF fair transport campaign

Nautilus International

S

Composite 1 (includes Motion 15 the amendments to 15 and 16)

Sea fairers’ working conditions and Workforce safety in the offshore and maritime industries

National Union of Rail, Maritime and Transport Workers, Nautilus

S

Composite 2

(includes Motions 17, 18, 19 and 20)

Brexit

Unite, CWU, RCM, TSSA

S

SECTION 3: RESPECT AND A VOICE AT WORK

21*

Continuing the fight against insecure work

GMB

*RMT amendment

S

22*

A better deal for low paid workers

USDAW

*Equity amendment

O

23*

Promoting flexible working

Chartered Society of Physiotherapy

*RCM amendment

S

24*

Bullying and harassment

FDA

*College of Podiatry amendment

S

25*

Regulation matters

Prospect

*USDAW amendment

S

Composite 3

(previously 26)

Grenfell Tower

Fire Brigades Union, Unite and Unison

S

27

Night working

National Union of Journalists

S

Composite 4 (previously 28 and amendment)

Healthcare workers and workplace violence in prisons

Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists, GMB and Community

S

29

Social Security

Public and Commercial Services Union

S

30

Stop and scrap universal credit

TUC Disabled Workers Conference

S

31*

Auto-enrolment and the lowest paid

Aegis

*CWU amendment

S

CWU to second

32

Corporal punishment of children in England

Association of Educational Psychologists

S

33

A strategy for children and young people (CYP)

Association of Educational Psychologists

S

Composite 5 (previously 34 and amendments)

Fighting sexual harassment and discrimination

Equity, Prospect

S

35

Sexual harassment in the music industry

Musicians’ Union

S

36

Sexual harassment

TUC Women’s Conference

S

37

We trust women – abortion rights

Royal College of Midwives

S

38

Equal pay/gender pay gap

National Union of Journalists

S

39

Armed forces and LGBT – dishonourable discharge

Society of Radiographers

S

40*

Austerity, artists and discrimination

Artists’ Union England

O

41

Support for gender self-declaration

TUC Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual and Transgender+ Conference

S

Composite 6

(Motion 42 and 43 and amendments)

Ending the Hostile environment immigration policy and justice for the Windrush generation

UNISON, Accord, PCS, RMT, Chartered Society of Physiotherapy and RCM

S

44*

Challenging the politics of hate

University College Union

*Unite amendment

S

Section 4 – Good Services

Composite 7

(includes Motions 45, 46, 47 and amendments)

Public services outsourcing – lessons from Carillion

UNISON, Unite, POA and Aslef

S

Composite 8 (Motion 48 and amendments)

Public sector

National Association of Head Teachers

NEU and FDA

S

Composite 15 (Motion 49, 50 and amendments)

Public sector pay

PCS, POA and FBU

S

Composite 9 (Motions 51, 52 and amendments)

Education funding crisis

NEU, National Association of Head Teachers and UCU

S

53*

Mental health and wellbeing of teachers

NASUWT

*GMB amendment

S

Composite 10 (Motion 54, 55 and amendments)

National Education Service

National Education Union, University College Union and Unison

S

56

Data misuse

Educational Institute of Scotland

S

57

Music education

Musicians’ Union

S

58

Education and training for life after football

Professional Footballers’ Association

S

59*

Central role of art and culture in education and communities

Artists’ Union England

*NASUWT amendment

S

Composite 11 (Motion 60 and amendment)

Health and social care workers subsidising the NHS

British Dietetic Association

Chartered Society of Physiotherapy, Community and The College of Podiatry

S

61*

NHS pay

Society of Chiropodists and Podiatrists

*FDA amendment

S

62

Preventing ill health

Chartered Society of Physiotherapy

S

Composite 12 [Motion 63, 64 and amendments]

Mental health

UNISON, Society of Radiographers,

USDAW, CWU, Equity and TSSA

S

65

Civil service impartiality

FDA

S

66

Family justice system in crisis

Napo

S

67

The transforming rehabilitation counter-revolution

Napo

S

68*

Grassland fires

Fire Brigades Union

*TSSA amendment

S

Section 5: Strong Unions

Composite 13 (Motion 69 and amendments)

A new deal for workers

Communication Workers Union

NEU and PCS

Move

70

Collective voice

Prospect

S

71

General data protection regulations (GDPR)

NASUWT

S

72

Organising fast food workers

BFAWU

S

73

Winning against atypical employment models

BALPA

S

74

Make 2019 the year of young workers

TUC Young Workers Conference

S

Composite 14 (Motion 75 and amendments)

Turkey

Educational Institute of Scotland

Unite and UCU

S

76*

International Labour Organisation

Accord

*NASUWT amendment

S

77

Food security and sustainability

British Dietetic Association

S

General Council Statements

General Council Statement on Brexit

–

S

General Council Statement on Collective Bargaining

–

S

*Following further discussion and consultation with the delegation after the delegates meeting, the position on Motion 40 was changed from Oppose to Support.

The above policy wasagreed.

5 CWU MOTIONS AND AMENDMENTS – SPEAKERS

The following CWU commitments and interventions were agreed:

PROPOSITION

TITLE

SPEAKER

DAY/TIME

1.

Industrial Strategy: An economy for the many

Tom Cooper

Tuesday P.M.

2.

The Future of the Retail Sector

Katie Dunning

Tuesday P.M.

7.

Just Transition and Energy Workers’ Voice

Tony Kearns

Tuesday A.M.

9.

Strategy for low-carbon industrial region

Tony Kearns

Tuesday A.M.

21.

Continuing the fight against insecure work

Jonathan Bellshaw

Tuesday A.M.

25

Regulation Matters

Maria Exall

Monday A.M.

41

Support for gender self-declaration

Angela Teeling

Tuesday A.M.

42

Justice for the Windrush generation

AJ Singh

Tuesday A.M.

44

Challenging the politics of hate

Beryl Shepherd

Tuesday A.M.

47

Independent inquiry into privatisation

Rob Wotherspoon

Monday P.M.

48

Public Sector

Mark Walsh

Monday P.M.

70

Collective Voice

Kate Hudson

Monday A.M.

74

Make 2019 the year of young workers

Fiona Curtis

Monday P.M.

6 ELECTIONS

GS nominated for General Council

Maria Exall nominated for General Council (LGBT Section I)

There will be an election in Section D (Women from Unions with fewer than 200,000 members – 5 candidates 4 to be elected as follows:Linda Rolf

Advance

Annette Mansell-GreenCWU Support
British Dietetic Association

Janice GodrichCWU Support
Public and Commercial Services Union

Sue FernsCWU Support

Prospect

Vicky KnightCWU Support
University and College Union

The recommended candidates wereagreed.

7 FRINGE MEETINGS AND RECEPTIONS

The delegation was advised of a number of fringe meetings involving, or of special interest to the CWU.